Landing with crosswind?
 

Hi,

I have a question about landings in crosswind. When i llok at Schiphol to airplanes i always see them land good :). But when i land on flight simulator (i'm just 15, so i can't fly a 737 :()i will land on the runway and then roll in the grass :(, because i land not with crosswind.

So, how do pilots do that? Do you guys press the peddals i nthe cockpit just for tuchdown so you will land good?

THANX

There are two methods of flying a crosswind approach.

The first method is to fly "wing-down" on the approach, that is to correct for the crosswind with bank but keep the aircraft straight with rudder. This is continued through the flare, and the aircraft will land on the into-crosswind maingear first, then the other, and finally the nosewheel.

The second is to fly a "crabbed approach", that is point the aircraft slightly into a crosswind but keeping the wings level. As the roundout / flare is initiated the aircraft is kicked straight onto the runway heading with rudder. To keep on the centreline, this is matched with into-wind aileron, causing the aircraft to touchdown on the into-wind gear first - essentially the same as the wing-down approach at the end.

Which is best depends partly upon the personal preferences of the pilot, but mostly upon the handling characteristics of the individual aircraft. Whatever method, the greater the crosswind, the harder it is to fly. With the crabbed approach, timing is particularly important, making that method slightly harder to fly (but usually less unpleasant during the approach; continuous sideslip is not much fun).

G

My own $0.02 (US 0.015) on this is that I find the wing-low approach is good for a light crosswind but in strong winds, especially if gusty, it's a lot less stressful to use the crab approach and kick straight in the flare. Regardless of the technique I use, I always start with wing-low to see how much bank is needed- if it looks like the wingtip will gouge the pavement I'll look for another runway.

It's US$ 0.013!! :D